Church burglary usually happens when it is closed. In May, the St. Augustine Catholic Church in Brooklyn, New York lost to thieves its rare golden tabernacle dating back to the 1800s and worth about $2 million, CNS News reported.
But three male robbers were daring enough to raid the chapel of the Leaders of Tomorrow International Churches in Canarsie, New York last week while its bishop was livestreaming a sermon to his remote congregants. At gunpoint, Bishop Lamor Whitehead was forced to lie down and was stripped of his watch, ring, necklace and crosses. His wife, who was present, was also robbed of her jewelry.
Police are still looking for the suspects whose hooded heads were caught on video before they entered the small church. Focus on the thieves, however, took a backseat as the robbery opened what seems to be a can of worms.
Whitehead, 44, has found himself at the center of media attention after the belongings he lost raised eyebrows. An accounting of the stolen items by the police revealed a $75,000 Rolex watch, a $75,000 Cavalier watch and several crosses worth tens of thousands of dollars, the New York Post reported.
The bishop downplayed his extravagant flamboyance, suggesting in a press conference there is nothing wrong with using a Rolls Royce car and wearing “Fendi, Louis and Gucci” suits that he regarded as God’s blessings.
A past criminal record that surfaced shed off his image as a victim a little bit more. Whitehead previously served five years in Sing Sing prison for multiple counts of identity fraud and grand larceny before being released in 2013, Thecity.nyc reported.